More passengers are using Yakima Air Terminal’s early morning and late-night flights, but Horizon Air is pulling from a pool of community money to cover losses.
Airport Director Robert Hodgman presented at Yakima City Council’s Tuesday study session, sharing passenger statistics and plans for further airport development, including adding a flight to Las Vegas this year.
Alaska Airlines added daily flights— an early morning departure to and late-night arrival from Seattle— in November 2023.
Since then, Hodgman said, 9,600 passengers have used the early morning flight and 7,300 have used the late-night arrival. The average number of passengers using the airport each month has nearly doubled in 2024.
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Still, Hodgman said, Alaska’s revenue was lower than its costs in three of the last four months. Ridership on flights from Yakima is still not high enough, Hodgman said.
Yakima was able to lure Alaska and its subsidiary Horizon Air, which operates the flights, to the table by agreeing to a minimum revenue guarantee last year. The city and local donors put together a $500,000 pool that Alaska could draw from if its operations in Yakima were losing money.
Alaska used to run the additional flights regularly, but reduced service to several Eastern Washington cities due to pilot shortages and an aircraft switch in 2022. Other cities, like Walla Walla and Wenatchee, agreed to the minimum revenue guarantee to bring back service.
Hodgman said that $111,263 has been used from that pool so far.
How to grow passenger numbers
Yakima Air Terminal is trying to improve customer service on the ground and lure more people back to the airport, Hodgman added.
“We have a strategy to continue to grow our ridership,” he said. “This second set of flights, we want to make them strong enough so that we no longer require a minimum revenue guarantee.”
One of the strategies is to increase rental car company hours so people can access those services before 9 a.m. or after 5 p.m., Hodgman said.
“It’s all about understanding the passenger demand,” Hodgman said. “The air carriers need to know how they’re going to make their money.”
Hodgman added that Yakima Air Terminal has strong competition with the Tri-Cities Airport, which offers more flights.
Flights out of Tri-Cities Airport also tend to be cheaper. A Yakima Herald-Republic analysis of the cheapest one-way prices offered in May and June, for example, shows the average daily flights to Seattle to be around $120 in the Tri-Cities and $130 in Yakima. That doesn't factor in the cost of getting from Yakima to Pasco.
There are several other plans at the Yakima Air Terminal, including adding a destination and modernizing the terminal. Hodgman shared updates for both.
Consultants for the city are looking at Allegiant, Avelo and Breeze air lines for a flight to Las Vegas, Hodgman said. Those flights are subject to the air travel industry and marketplace, Hodgman said, but he’s pushing to have them in October.
New flights will likely come with a new minimum revenue guarantee.
“I have been hard at work trying to make that happen,” he said. “There will likely be a minimum revenue guarantee with that. It’s important that we maximize the ridership on our existing revenue guarantee to minimize our loss of funds in order to redirect our funds to incentivize that air carrier.”
Terminal modernization
Hodgman also outlined the Yakima Air Terminal’s plan for renovating its terminal.
Design for the entire project is being funded using federal funding and should be completed May 1, he said.
The first phase of the project includes a new roof and an updated kitchen in the cafeteria area. Yakima Air Terminal will seek a vendor for the café space and hope to have fresh coffee available to travelers, he said.
Then, the airport plans to move security screening, waiting areas and boarding gates upstairs. Passengers would board planes from overhead walkways, said Mayor Patricia Byers. The terminal’s downstairs area would be used for a restaurant and baggage and air cargo services would be updated, Hodgman said.
“The strategy is to make this a destination, not just a place to hop on a plane,” Hodgman said. “We’re going to bring the restaurant back with some style and we’ve got some really big ideas with what we’re going to do with the restaurant.”
The project could be an expensive one, and Hodgman is seeking funding from various community partners. He added that when designs are completed, the city will have an easier time seeking government funding.
The airport has also completed work on new tarmac, adding 13 acres for hangar space and development. Hodgman said the space is being advertised for lease at $0.22 per square foot.
